An accomplished debut, this 1979-set novel is intimately intertwined with the England of today
This accomplished debut presents an immersive evocation of 1970s Yorkshire but is intimately intertwined with the England of today
Jennie Godfrey has written a love letter to 1970s Yorkshire but is never blinded by how it is defined by the fault lines of class, race or the threat of violence“Ey up?” It is 1979 and northern England’s greatest existential threats – Margaret Thatcher and the serial killer known as the Yorkshire Ripper – are both in the ascent. Twelve-year-old Miv, an archetypical tomboy, is living under the shadow of both of them and more.
Her response is as ambitious as it is ridiculous: she will discover the identity of the Ripper and so restore tranquillity to God’s Own Country. To this end, Miv recruits her best friend and together they careen less towards investigative breakthroughs than towards their own messy transitions into adulthood.
Godfrey has written a love letter to this place and time, yet she is never blinded to how it is defined by the fault lines of class, race or the smouldering threat of violence, not just from the Ripper but from the “short-haired lads” who stalk the streets calling for the end of immigration, the rejection of the common market, and the return of capital punishment as a way to “Make Britain great again”.
Ireland Latest News, Ireland Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Gardai probe 'suspicious' death of elderly woman, 89, in TipperaryThe woman's body was found yesterday in Nenagh
Read more »
Woman (27) found dead in suspicious circumstances in apartment on fire in Co CorkGardaí attended scene after receiving call that woman had received injuries
Read more »
Patricia Piccinini: ‘We’re hard-wired to be suspicious of difference’The Australian artist exhibits a wilderness of imagined creatures for the Galway International Arts Festival. The works challenge our empathy and revulsion
Read more »
Dublin Bus staff evacuated from depot after reports of suspicious deviceStaff at the Conyngham Road bus depot were evacuated as a precaution after Gardaí received reports of a suspicious device
Read more »
Nineteen Eighty-Four turns 75: the older George Orwell’s dystopian novel grows, the more urgent it feelsTruth, it turns out, is among the most difficult things to cling to
Read more »
If things go wrong for new boss then hold FAI - not just managerFAI have taken a gamble on new boss - after holding tightly to the dice for eight months.
Read more »